Association of the week : The Anchor

This instrument used by the Mediterranean Sailors is considered since Antiquity as a symbol for the Gods of the Sea. The anchor assured stability and security – becoming then a symbol of trust.

In the beginning of the Christian era, its crossed shape was associated with the secret symbol of deliverance (crux dissimulate).

A poet in the XVIIth century, W.F v. Hohberg, wrote the following lines about it: “When a sailor sees the tempest approaching, he throws the anchor and stands still. That’s why – when a soul asks for strength from God’s love – neither grief nor fear can disturb it.”